Google, Google Scholar, and library databases all have different strengths and weakness that you need to be aware of when deciding which tool to use. To help illustrate the differences, first watch the video "Why Use Library Databases" and then read the tool comparison chart below.
Tool Comparison Chart
Strengths
Weaknesses
Google
Good for finding background information
Easy to find websites
Fast and easy to use
Overwhelming amount of results
Difficult to filter results to a specific type of source
Google Scholar
Searches variety of scholarly material
Searches across subjects and disciplines
Allows some filtering of results
Articles found are not always free
Large number of results can be difficult to sift through
Citation information is difficult to quickly read
Library Databases
Hundreds of databases for different subjects
Citation information is easy to quickly read
Results include links to full text
Easy to filter results by subject and source type
Takes time to determine the appropriate database to use